Washington [US]: The United States is in talks with Poland on a deal to provide fighter jets to Ukraine, a White House spokesperson confirmed.
The spokesperson also said that they are figuring out the logistics as to how the aircraft would be transferred from Poland to Ukraine. US is determining what “capabilities we could provide to backfill Poland if it decided to transfer planes to Ukraine,” added the spokesperson, reported CNN News. The spokesperson did not clear what ‘backfill’ options were under consideration and noted that sending fighter jets into Ukraine is a “sovereign decision for any country to make”.
Moreover, Two US lawmakers participated in a Zoom call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday said Zelensky indicated Poland had signalled it is prepared to send MiG fighter jets but “they are only waiting for you [the US] to allow it.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday praised Warsaw for playing a “vital” role in the Ukraine crisis, by stating that the United States has deployed doubled the number of military personnel in Poland.
In a meeting with the Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, Blinken said expressed the United States’ admiration and appreciation for Poland’s solidarity and support for Ukraine.
“Poland is doing vital work to respond to this (Ukraine) crisis. It has done a great deal to facilitate security assistance to Ukraine. Since January 30, the US has more than doubled the number of military personnel deployed in Poland to now more than 10,000,” Blinken said.
Speaking about the humanitarian crisis, Poland Foreign Minister said: “Everything possible must be done to ensure evacuation. Russia’s aggression in Ukraine causes a humanitarian crisis of an unimaginable scale. Our priority is organising effective aid for millions of refugees. Poland has already received up to 700,000 refugees.”
Earlier Blinken met with Charles Michel, President of the European Council in Brussels as the two discussed their “support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.” Moreover, Blinken on Wednesday said the United States, in coordination with its allies and partners, is imposing additional economic costs on Russia and Belarus in response to military operations against Ukraine.
Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognised Ukraine’s breakaway regions – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent entities.
